We are observing more chatter, and some SEOs, like Glenn Gabe and Lily Ray, are posting screenshots of websites they track in the sector seeing major changes. Also, some of the tracking tools are starting to show a larger upswing in volatility.
Here are some top tweets,
Here is some ongoing discussion on WebmasterWorld:
“Very big drop (-40% to 50%) since two weeks now. With March Google product reviews update, SERPs itself doesn’t seem to have changed so it could be some super AI going wild.”
“Today, for some of my searches, I’m seeing positions 1-6 on all YouTube. I have checked thrice, and I wasn’t in the video section! My website traffic continues to decline, and as per my YouTube analytics, traffic from Google to my channel has boosted by 46% since this time last year!”
“I see continuing increases in the top 3 rankings, but English language traffic is weak. The USA has been consistently weak for about ten days now; the UK also lowers most days but not as much. Today Canada is also off by around 37%. The theory about the war between Russia and Ukraine having a huge impact might be true, but if so, why not reduce traffic from continental Europe? Also, why the sudden shift and decline…if it were news-related, it would be more gradual, should not overnight.”
Few More Comments on Google Product Reviews Update:
“The sudden declines in website traffic following the same patterns indicate that it’s all manipulation on the part of March Google product reviews update. They are again experimenting with page layout and other ways to ensure that the website doesn’t get any traffic and they keep it all. I see some major competitors’ sites reduced to running ads for almost everything now, which is exactly what Google wants. They will not profit at $5 per click with all the fraudulent clicks. I tried this last year. Google’s traffic from AdWords is simply a waste.”
“According to SEMrush, I had a great boost in visibility today, now passing my top competitor. Yet the traffic on my home page is down 71%, and my USA traffic is down 56% this morning. The ranking is not correlating with my website traffic. I wish I had ample time and skills to deep analyze why, but I can’t afford more of my time. I’m busy and focused on looking for ways to diversify away from search. I must say; social isn’t much better. If you aren’t paying Facebook or Instagram, you will get nothing from those social platforms.”
